WESTERN BUREAU:

Three St James men accused of stealing 14 bags of oranges from the Montpelier Citrus Company in the parish, were offered a combined $300,000 bail in the Montego Bay Resident Magistrate's Court on Friday.

Forty-nine-year-old taxi operator Wayne Cameron and 25-year-old vendor Franklin Fletcher, both of Retirement district and 33-year-old vendor Winston Hall from Lottery, are charged with praedial larceny.

Allegations are that on January 27, about 2:30 a.m., a security guard at the company received information that an unauthorised vehicle was on a section of the farm, and on investigating he saw a Nissan station wagon leaving the property.

A report was made to the Anchovy police and the vehicle was intercepted along the Anchovy main road with the three defendants tending to its engine. The car was found to be laden down with oranges, and when the men could not properly account for the items, they were made to push the car to the Anchovy Police Station where they were subsequently charged.

Cameron told Resident Magistrate Sandria Wong-Small that he did not have any previous convictions.

"You say you have not been charged for any previous offence. Are you sure?" asked RM Wong-Small.

"Yes, Your Honour, I am just a taxi operator," said Cameron.

However, Hall admitted to a previous charge for wounding, while Fletcher copped to a past charge of exposing goods for sale without a licence.

"You say you're charged for wounding, when do you come back to court on that matter?" RM Wong-Small asked Hall.

"It's supposed to be the 8th of this month," replied Hall.

Meanwhile, the prosecution admitted that there is still one document outstanding from its case file against the men.

RM Wong-Small offered $100,000 bail with two sureties to each of the defendants and ordered that their fingerprints should be taken and for their police records to be sought.

"Mr Fletcher and Mr Cameron, you will report to the Granville Police Station every Monday and Friday between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. Mr Hall will report at the Amity Hall Police Station every Monday and Friday between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m.," said RM Wong-Small. "When you take up your bail, you will come back on March 13."